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6 mars 2012

A rare large silvery bronze octalobed mirror. Tang dynasty (618-907)

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A rare large silvery bronze octalobed mirror. Tang dynasty (618-907). Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012

Of kuihua (sunflower) shape, the knob forming the center of an eight-petaled flower flanked by a pair of standing phoenixes with knotted, tasseled cords trailing upward from their beaks, with axiniu leaping amidst clouds above the knob and a qilin leaping amidst clouds below, all within a raised border, with a small leafy sprig in each of the eight lobes of the rim; 10 5/8 in. (27 cm.) diam., ¼ in. (.5 cm.) thick, box - 1833.7g. Estimate $25,000 - $35,000

唐 瑞獸雙鳳紋葵花式鍍銀銅鏡

Provenance: A.W. Bahr (1877-1959).

Robert H. Ellsworth Collection, New York, acquired from Edna Bahr, Connecticut, late 1960s.

Notes: Compare the very similar mirror of comparable large size (27.6 cm.) illustrated by Ju-hsi Chou,Circles of Reflection: The Carter Collection of Chinese Bronze Mirrors, The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2000, pp. 72-3, no. 65. Both this mirror and the present mirror would have been presented as wedding gifts. Fenghuang (phoenix) is a combination of characters for the male and female animal, and so the two phoenixes would represent a couple. A pair of phoenixes also symbolizes happiness in marriage, and the silk cords grasped in their beaks represent longevity. Both the xiniu and the qilin are mythical creatures. In the context of this design the xiniu may symbolize true love between the couple. Like fenghuangqilin is a combination of the characters for the male and female animal, so here the qilin may represent the couple, and the wish for a son or sons, as the qilin is supposed to appear just before the birth of a great sage. 

Christies. Luminous Perfection: Fine Chinese Mirrors from the Robert H. Ellsworth Collection, 22 March 2012, New York, Rockefeller Plaza

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